The End's Illusion, Prologue (Collab)

The End's Illusion

Prologue, A Memory of Anguish.

~X~

Hassan Higurashi, my dad. The most wonderful man in the world.
Born 15th September 1954.
I was too young to remember what happened the day he died, I was only a child with a curious mind living in a massive world with so much to explore. The thought of my dad leaving the planet - leaving me and my mum to fend for ourselves in this life - never occurred to me. Again, I was so very young, too small to understand what it meant to have someone close to you die in an accident.

I remember one time when I was five years old, I climbed up the steep steps of our house and crept closer to my mum’s bedroom where I heard the sound of pages turning. I left the stairs behind me, peering my little head around the door. My mum was comfortably perched on the end of her king sized bed, with her head down and looking through some sort of book that was bigger than her lap. As I entered her head jerked up in alarm, but as her eyes settled on my face a gentle smile replaced the worry. “Kagome,” she whispered, I could hear the smile shining in her voice. “Come here.” Her right hand patted the space beside her, inviting me to sit, so I did. Crossing the room I climbed onto the bed, snuggling beside my mum, I tilted my head against her shoulder, looking down at the photo album in her lap.

“You know who that is?” Mum said, pointing at a photo of a man with jet black hair that spiked out at the side of his head, making him look like he had an extra pair of fluffy ears. His hair didn’t grow past his neck or shoulders like mine did, but you could tell that we were related somehow. At the time I couldn’t see any resemblance - because as a child who would look for something like that? But the man also had the same eye color as me, the same face structure, the same chin, the same smile. The only thing different were his ears, they looked a little bit small for his big head.

“That’s your daddy,” Mum continued when I didn’t answer. “You weren’t old enough to remember when he died. Do you remember what I told you? That day he was in a car crash and him and I both were badly injured.” I remember watching her shake her head slowly, looking down at a picture of her and her husband together, grinning together. She reflected back to that most painful chapter in her lifetime. Her finger thumb the picture, tracing the outline of the man’s chin.

We remained silent after that for a couple of minutes, both of us studying the photos.
“I tried to comfort him, despite my injuries. But he was dead before the ambulance got there.” My mum averted her gaze just then to look elsewhere, the sunlight that crept through the bedroom window made the water balancing in her eyes glisten and gleam like glitter. She tried not to blink, because if she did fresh tears would begin streaming down her cheeks, it crossed my mind that she was doing her best to conceal her emotions to show her daughter how much of a strong woman she was. Even at a young age, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

“Kagome,” Mum whispered tenderly, turning her head back to my direction. There was so much kindness reflecting off her face, and the closer I studied her, I realized how much older she looked than usual. With tears brimming her eyes it made her put on a few years. “You daddy would have loved to see you now.”

~X~

Silent tears streamed down Kagome's face as she reflected back to those memories in her mind. They were indeed painful. But she knew all too well that emotions were better out than bottled up inside of her. Even though she never met her father in person, she still remembered that photograph of him, the memory of his face was imprinted like a tattoo inside her brain so that she could never forget his image.

“My dear,” said an elderly woman who wore a black eye patch over her left eye. “This seems very emotional for ye,” Kaede said softly in a soothing tone of voice. She lent forward on her knees, stretching her palms flat out towards a small fire that was blazing in the middle of the room. “But me must know, why are ye telling me this?”
Kagome gazed up at Kaede, a sad smile crept up on her face for a split second before it dissolved once more, leaving her with the tears of time. “I feel that at least one person should know of my past. That way, if something did happen to me, at least someone will know.” Kagome said honestly.
“Why don't ye tell Inuyasha?” The woman tilted her head with curiosity. But Kagome wasn’t looking, she was too busy staring down at her knees which she suddenly found her green skirt so memorizing.
“I don't think he would really listen or take me seriously.”
The old woman studied Kagome's expression for any bizarre signs, but all she found was misery. It was strange to see Kagome looking so solemn, too in deep thought for her liking. She craved for the old ladys help, but at the same time she didn’t want to sound needy.
“I think Inuyasha is a little more considerate than ye suppose him to be,” Kaede replied with a reassuring smile. “But if you don't want to tell him, that's understandable. Your secret is safe with me.” The young girls head snapped back. The usual shimmer returned to her honey brown orbs at the mention of ‘your secret is safe with me’, and a more genuine smile poked up her cheeks.
“Thank you” Kagome replied more cheerfully.
Kaede gave away one of her single nods. “Let us just hope that a time won't come where you’ll regret not telling him.”
“I don't think that'll happen,” Kagome replied rising from the wooden floor of Kaede's hut. She thanked the old Priestess for time before waving farewell. Then she may her exit, casually strolling for the door and off to join her friends who were probably still waiting for her.

By the time she got to the well - an old portal which connected this demon dimension to her reality - with her bow gripped in her hands and her backpack slung over her shoulder, she saw Sango and Miroku preparing themselves to go on another expedition. Shippo and Kirara sat by the bottom of the well both gazing up at the clear sky cloud watching. Kagome smiled at the pair, admiring how adorable they looked together, then her attention was withdrawn by an abrupt rustling of leaves. She blinked, casting her eyes further up one of the tallest trees, her gaze settled on a figure perched lazily on a thick branch. They were dressed in a crimson coat that their body practically drowned in. Their arms were crossed over their chest. And as Kagome looked up, at the same time the males gaze turned to look at her. Kagome couldn’t help but notice that the man wore his usual blank expression, looking at him was like watching paint dry.

“Took your time, where have you been?” Inuyasha growled with irritation. He hopped down from where he sat in the tree, walking right up to Kagome's face, invading her personal bubble. Yes, he did seem to have developed a habit of doing that only to her.
“Well, I did run. And I was with Kaede,” Kagome tried to sound as calm as she could. But deep down she had the equal amount of frustration as her companion did.
The half demon scoffed, bring up his arms to cross over his chest again. “What were you doing with that old wench?” There was contempt embedded in his tone of voice, and Kagome frowned. That certain word forming on her tongue, a word that she was glad only she could say. Wordlessly the mortal turned her back to Inuyasha and sighed.
“Osuwari.” She hissed through gritted teeth. Immediately, the purple necklace around the demon’s neck glowed brightly, the piece of jewelry yanked him down abruptly and his body followed, crashing to the ground with a massive thud, face first.
This act always sent Shippo rolling on the floor in a giggling fit. Sango and Miroku’s reaction was a combination of displeasure and amusement. Nevertheless, they managed to muffle their laughter by coughing.
Inuyasha peeled his face from the earth. “Kagome,” he growled as he threw daggers up at her with flaring eyes of resentment. “Get some control of yourself, woman!” With her back still facing him, Kagome simply shrugged. She wasn't going to fight back, there was no point.
“Once you two have finished, may we get going?” Sango said politely.
Inuyasha staggered to his feet and nodded. The group then left the village and continued their quest to find the remaining pieces of the Shikon Jewel. Little did they know however, that this time, they would encounter something very different.

Something that was far more dangerous and sinister than Naraku himself.